If you’ve signed onto a social media platform, viewed a comments section, or engaged with society in general, you’ve likely encountered a troll.
Trolls revel in saying fill-in-the-blank-ist things that offend most decent human beings. Maybe the most unfortunate thing about our modern society is that these comments are becoming normalized as part of the daily routine. Just turn on your local or national news or open up your social media platform of choice and see. Or in this case, listen to a sports radio show.
ESPN Radio host Dan Le Batard shared an offensive comment he received, surprise, via Twitter, mocking his father Gonzalo, who is one of the most popular figures at ESPN. (That’s not an overstatement.) To his credit, Le Batard didn’t ignore it. Instead, he tried to educate the troll on how shallow and wrongheaded his “learn to speak English” tweet really was.
This is how you effectively dismantle a troll. Another gem from @LeBatardShow pic.twitter.com/euvWuo4I89
— A Plus (@a_plus) November 14, 2016
I know it’s hard to take someone seriously wearing a Bobby Petrino-inspired neckbrace, but if there’s anyone who can pull it off, it’s DLB.
Twitter trolls are an unfortunate part of modern society, but recently people have felt empowered to openly say these kinds of things and think it’s just fine to do so. Instead of responding with silence, or with a block or mute button, Le Batard chose to lift up his father’s achievements and how proud he was of him.
That’s how the trolls of society lose – not by staying silent, but by speaking truth. That’s powerful. And that’s something all of us should appreciate.
H/T Complex
